Cool New Legs Mimic Cyborgs, Satyrs

Increasingly, life imitates science fiction. Honda has recently developed cyborg-like leg and body support systems that look like they’re straight out of The Terminator. Intended to aid Japan’s aging population as well as factory workers who stand or crouch all day, these contraptions are designed to lessen the weight on tired legs and joints. Watch Odelia Lee try them out for Gizmodo:

On the fantasy end of the design spectrum, Seattle-based sculptor Kim Graham has created “digitigrade leg extensions” that would feel at home in A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Mark Wilson describes them for Gizmodo: “Essentially a fancy pair of stilts, the legs mimic digitigrades (animals including horses that bear weight on their toes).” Watch Graham demonstrate their use: